Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

Go raibh maith agat, a Cheann Comhairle. Yesterday, we had an extraordinary spectacle at the Joint Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach. One of the most senior and highest paid civil servants in the State engaged in an arrogant two-hour dismissal of an independent expert report commissioned by his line Minister. The Secretary General of the Department of Health, Robert Watt, was clear. He rejects "most" of the findings of the report by Maura Quinn, the former chief executive of the Institute of Directors in Ireland, into his botched handling of the secondment of Dr. Tony Holohan to Trinity College Dublin. This is despite the fact the Minister for Health says he accepts the findings of the report. It is also contrary to the Tánaiste's own assertion that the report cannot be questioned and is conclusive, so perhaps he can enlighten us because it is still not clear on what basis Mr. Watt has rejected the findings of the report. They are not a matter of opinion; they are based on verifiable facts. They are not open to debate.

Those facts are that Mr. Watt engaged in a solo run when Dr. Holohan indicated he was considering stepping down as Chief Medical Officer and moving to academia; committed €20 million of public money to this process without any Government approvals or oversight; failed to provide any rationale for the extent of the €20 million funding; completely bypassed the Health Research Board and its rigorous and transparent protocols surrounding applications for funding in assigning this money; failed to inform the Minister for Health about this process; misrepresented the fact he had not informed the Secretary General of the Department of the Taoiseach of the detail of this proposal; and misrepresented the fact the Tánaiste's own chief of staff had not been given any detail about this process. This is quite the litany. Of course, he now tells us he rejects the findings of the Government-approved report into this entire debacle. We know the Tánaiste's chief of staff, Deirdre Gillane, took a rather dim view of what Mr. Watt was misrepresenting in respect of her role in this shambles. In language that can only be described as damning, she said his assertions about her were "grossly inaccurate and unwarranted" and "wholly without foundation". I can fully understand Ms Gillane's irritation at being dragged into this controversy by Mr. Watt despite having zero involvement in it.

Important questions for the Tánaiste and the Government arise from this mess. It is not enough to say he accepts the report when Mr. Watt, its central character, is loudly intimating that he thinks it is a load of rubbish. I have three questions. Is it appropriate for Mr. Watt to reject the findings of this report? How can Mr. Watt's position be tenable? Does the Tánaiste or the Government intend to take any action to make Mr. Watt accountable?

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